Hemi Hema received the Queen’s Service Medal (Q.S.M) in 2012 for his services to the Māori Deaf community. Along with Karen Pointon in the same year, Hemi was the first Māori Deaf person to receive such an honour. He was recognised for inspiring deaf Māori and their families, with his investiture ceremony on Thursday 30 August 2012 at the Auckland Government House.
Hemi and Deaf Aotearoa
Hemi was the Southern Regional Māori Liaison Officer for the Deaf Association of New Zealand in Christchurch until 2009, when he moved to Hamilton from Christchurch to be closer to his iwi and became President of Deaf Aotearoa, a role he held until 2011. Hemi has worked with Māori Deaf and their families to develop links between whanau and the marae and is dedicated to driving change to improve the outcomes for Māori Deaf in Aotearoa. Hemi was involved in the production of the New Zealand National Anthem DVD, God Defend New Zealand, performed in three national languages.
Hemi on Te Puni Kokiri
Hemi was interviewed by Te Puni Kokiri on his views in supporting Māori Deaf. There is research that shows many Māori Deaf are isolated from their iwi due to difficulties in communication. Hemi feels this means whakapapa and other knowledge cannot be passed on. Hemi was determined to encourage whanau to learn sign language and involve their Deaf members in discussions of such tikanga as tangi, whānau assets and developments on the marae.
Note: This page was last updated 2015. Contributions are welcomed.
